Why High Concept?

Chris Soth has written a very good article about how to come up with high concept ideas. It's simple and straight to the point and I think will get your creative juices flowing in new directions. By the way, Chris puts on a great one-day seminar if anyone is curious.

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Getting High: How and Why to Write High Concept Screenplays. And How to Make Sure They Don't SUCK.
By Chris Soth
June 11, 2009

Summer is here, the season of the blockbuster, and like so many summers before it, the “blockbuster” fare will be mainly driven by two things:
- Sequels.
- High Concept Fare.
- And Sequels to High Concept Fare.

Ok, that’s three things. But I wanted to point out that there’s a significant overlap between the two AND that the High Concept rules the summer, Hollywood’s biggest money-making season.

High Concept: What IS it?
Simply put, a High Concept movie is one … driven by … its concept. The concept — or idea of the movie predominates almost every other element in it — is the reason the movie got made, and probably the reason you’re going to see it, right?
Yes, it may have a movie star or two, it may have delightful product tie-ins, but the reason you came to see it, want to see it, need to see it, is …
… that idea.

It’s so cool. You have to see that movie. Maybe you’ve always wondered what a movie on this premise would be like, maybe you’d never think of it in a million years, but the moment you heard, you realized “Yes! Wow! Why hasn’t that movie been made? It’d be so cool to see that! In fact, I never knew till now, but I’ve GOT to see that!”
It was the concept — the idea of the movie that brought you to the theater.

So …
Why Write High Concept?
As a novice screenwriter, chances are your concept, the central idea of your screenplay, is your best chance to get it read. It’s unlikely you have a major movie star attached to your screenplay, or Steven Spielberg wants to direct, or that you’ve brought $100 million in financing to the table along with a fat deal for European distribution and a deal for Burger King to distribute toys based on your main character with their happy meals … but kudos if you have.
If you are like most of us, however …

… tapping into the above “that’s so COOL” feeling is your best chance to get read, getting read is your best chance to get represented, and getting represented is your best chance to get your screenplay optioned, sold, developed, shot, and distributed. Being ready with that “one-line”/”elevator pitch” opens the door.
So, am I saying, "Throw away all your personal stories that you love, and write only High Concept Hollywood crap?" Am I telling you to “sell out”?
No, I am not. Let me ask you:

Have you ever liked a High Concept movie? Were you one of the millions who flocked to Iron Man last summer? Did you like it? Did you like Raiders of the Lost Ark, Independence Day, Men in Black, or Spiderman? Back to the Future, Roger Rabbit, Liar Liar, Transformers? The list goes on and on …
If you had written any of these movies, do you think you’d be proud of the accomplishment? Could you sell out and take pride in your work? To me, they seem mutually exclusive.

So, would it be selling out to write a movie you actually love? The key: Find an idea where the High Concept and what you love as a writer overlap. And write something that could be one of your favorite movies one day.
And how do we come up with the High Concept idea?
Short answer: Look to the supernatural. That is, pick something that doesn’t actually occur in the real world because it would go against the laws of physics or nature. Look at the examples above: There aren’t really space aliens as far we know, teenagers don’t gain spider powers in our own world, we can’t time travel, robots are not using our planet as the final battleground in their eons long war, and cartoon rabbits stay pretty much to themselves. But in the movies …

… we get to see those things!

And that alone is often worth the price of admission. There’s no real Jurassic Park, but if we could go and see dinosaurs, we’d sure want to … and till they manage to clone them for us.
Another thing? Movies depicting the supernatural will have to use…Special Effects! Because you just can’t shoot that stuff, it doesn’t really happen. And we love seeing special effects! Especially since they got good. Blockbusters are made on them.

While not ALL High Concept is supernatural, MOST supernatural is High Concept. So that’s a pretty good place to start.

And … how do you make sure that your new High Concept idea isn’t selling out?

THE TRICK:

Make the supernatural phenomenon, whatever it is … a metaphor for a human condition or weakness. You can do it. Think about it: Peter Parker is coming into his own as an adolescent, as all of us do, but is lagging a little behind on his maturity, so he must learn: “with great power comes great responsibility”. Iron Man has a weak heart and so covers his weakness in armor, as his alter ego protects himself with superficial relations with the opposite sex. The hero of Liar, Liar depends on dishonesty to make his living, but it’s leaked into his personal relationships and needs correcting.

So. Come up with a concept that is a “must-see.” If it’s not readily apparent, start turning your mind to the supernatural … magic, charms, superpowers, time travel, werewolves and vampires, abominable snowmen, aliens, and Loch Ness Monsters. Then connect them via metaphor to something inexorably human and emotional.

Chris Soth, creator of the Mini-Movie Method, has had many years of success as a Hollywood screenwriter. He has had his work produced by major studios, holds an MFA in screenwriting, and is the author of Sold! How I Set Up Three Pitches in Hollywood.